In general, as processing processes for activating water to produce an active water, the electromagnetic wave processing for utilizing ultrasonic wave or the like, the chemical processing for acting ozone or the like, the water purifying processing of superpure water, and others have hitherto been known. By these processing processes, active waters having respective characteristics have been obtained.
In addition, in recent years, the investigations of the life chemistry have been promoted to attain the development of a novel active substance of divalent and trivalent iron salt, Fe.sup.+2.sub.m Fe.sup.+3.sub.n Cl.sub.2m+3n, in which m and n each represents a variable. This active substance is an inorganic salt (e.g., hydrochlorides, sulfates, nitrates, etc.) or organic salt (e.g., formates, acetates, propionates, etc.) of iron having intermediate natures between divalent iron and trivalent ion. For example, this active substance can be obtained in a transition state in the case where ferric chloride is thrown into an aqueous solution of strong alkalis such as sodium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, and lithium hydroxide to cause the valence conversion and therefore, can presently be produced on an industrial scale (see Japanese Patent Publication Nos. 3-63593 and 4-27171).
It has been clarified that the foregoing active substance of divalent and trivalent iron salt has the following functions upon being brought into contact with water. That is, it is noted that if a very slight amount (concentration: 2.times.10.sup.-12 ml=1/20,000,000,000,000) of this active substance is mixed in the usual water, an aqueous 1/20,000,000,000,000 wt % solution of the substance (hereinafter, this aqueous solution being referred to as ".pi. water" for the sake of convenience) has the following characteristics.
(Structure change of water molecule)
Usually, since in the water molecule, the centers of gravity of hydrogen and oxygen do not overlap each other, the plus/minus polarity occurs. For this reason, since the water molecules are bonded to each other in a cage-like state due to the hydrogen bonding, hydrocarbons, methane, gases, and the like are dissolved into the cage. On the other hand, in the .pi. water, the bonding structure between the water molecules is changed from the polar molecule to the non-polar molecule due to the electron spin, i.e., the centers of gravity of H (hydrogen) and O (oxygen) are made overlap each other, whereby the bipolarity becomes null. In another word, the water molecules themselves no longer have a plus or minus polarity and as a result, it may be considered that the structure of the water molecule changes from the cage-like state to the string-like state. For this reason, the hydrocarbons and the like are not dissolved thereinto not like the usual water.
(Deionization reaction)
Usually, metals or metallic salts are subjected to ionic dissociation in water, whereby substance changes mainly consisting of ionization reaction occur. On the other hand, since in the .pi. water, there is neither plus polarity nor minus polarity, dedissociation of metallic ions occurs, thereby forming a nonionic reaction system.
(Change of expansion coefficient of gas)
In the case where the (water is present together with a gas (air) in the same system, the apparent expansion coefficient of the gas against the temperature changes depending on the temperature. That is, though in the case of distilled water, the air volume linearly expanded in proportion to the increase in the temperature, in the case of the .pi. water, the air volume changed along the curve having an inflection point in the vicinity of 22.degree. C.
(Change of potential difference)
Usually, in water, the potential difference elevates with an increase of metallic ions. On the other hand, since in the .pi. water, metallic ions are subjected to deionization dissociation, the potential difference is lowered, leading to the removal of heavy metallic ions.
(Stabilizing effect of pH)
Usually, the pH is determined depending on the degrees (amounts) of acidic substances and alkaline substances contained in water. On the other hand, in the .pi. water, acidic substances (e.g., sulfide ions, etc.) and alkaline substances (e.g., hydroxide ions, etc.) are controlled and subjected to deionization dissociation, whereby the pH is made neutral and stabilized.
(Interception of pathogenic fungi)
Various fungi including bacteria are unicellular microorganisms and have a minus charge. These various fungi inhabit in an ionic reaction system of the usual water. On the other hand, in the .pi. water, the ionic reaction is inhibited, and the equilibrium condition of the various fungi is changed, thereby changing the system to a circumstance where the various fungi can no longer multiply.
As described above, the foregoing substances are experimentally proven to change the structure of the water molecule, thereby activating the water and are presently widely used as modification activators. Nowadays, the investigations and experiments have further been made especially as to the processes of pharmacological and physiological use of the above-described .pi. water, resulting in obtaining noteworthy results.
In addition, as other processing processes for modifying and activating the water to produce an active water, an electromagnetic processing process for giving a magnetic field, an electric field, or the like to water is drawing attention. In general, if a considerably strong magnetic field of 1 terrace (=10.sup.4) is applied to water, the energy which the water can obtain is about 10 s/mol based on the calculation of the magnetic field energy, the value being remarkably smaller than the values of the thermal motion energy of water and the hydrogen bonding energy of water. For these reasons, it was hard to consider that this magnetic field energy strongly acts the energy which the water possesses, thereby changing the nature of water. However, in 1977, the "Magnetization Processing of Water" was reported by B. E. Classen, USSR, and thereafter, it has been widely known that this processing is useful for giving various effects as an active water, so that the thus-processed active water is being put into practice in not only Europe and America but also Japan.
Although the mechanism how the magnetic field acts on the water has not yet been clarified in detail, the structure of water always changes, the time for which a constant structure is kept is about 10.sup.-12 second, and association and dissociation are repeated. At this point, it may be considered that the magnetic field influences such association and dissociation.
The present inventor paid attention to the above-described facts and made extensive investigations and experiments and as a result, developed a novel active substance of magnetic divalent and trivalent iron salt (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-61822). This active substance of divalent and trivalent iron salt is an active substance capable of modifying and activating water, which simultaneously possesses both of the characteristics due to the electromagnetic processing and those due to the chemical processing. Though the active substance of divalent and trivalent iron salt is obtained by, for example, chemically processing a magnetite, its production process and the like will be described later in detail.
The above-described active substance of magnetic divalent and trivalent iron salt is brought into contact with water and acts so as to have the following characteristics. That is, if a very slight amount (concentration: 2.times.10.sup.-12 ml=1/20,000,000,000,000) of this active substance is mixed in the usual water, an aqueous 1/20,000,000,000,000 wt % solution of the substance (hereinafter, this aqueous solution being referred to as ".pi. water" for the sake of convenience) possesses the same characteristics as in the active water having been subjected to electromagnetic processing, in addition to the characteristics which the .pi. water possesses as described above. In particular, since this active substance is dissolved in water and co-present therein, it acts on the water more strongly and effectively as compared with the active water having a magnetic field applied thereto externally. This active substance can be used as a modification activator of water like the substance of the .pi. water as described above, and this magnetic .pi. water has a possibility for the pharmacological and physiological use like the above-described .pi. water.
As described above, each of the .pi. water and the magnetic .pi. water is an active water which can be widely used and has a possibility for the medicinal use. However, these .pi. water and magnetic .pi. water, as they stand, are not yet satisfactory for the medicinal use, and there is room for further improvements.